A Few Problems
by KateB819
Summary: As Selene’s exboyfriend comes back from exile, Michael finds it harder and harder to control his Hybridside as an uncontrollable rage builds. Plus, there's a traitor, leaving Selene with a few problems...
1. Prologue

* * *

**Year 1864**

* * *

Selene was so happy. _Tonight's the night_, she thought to herself, her body tingling in joy.

After three hundred years, it seemed like she hand Leon were finally taking another step forward.

Selene basically skipped into her room, but something was wrong. Where Leon kept his clothes were empty – the drawers were vacant. His pipe was missing, the one that he'd smoke every night before going to sleep. The scissors she cut his hair with was mysteriously gone; his closet was filled with nothing but loneliness.

Confused, 460-year-old Selene wandered around for some clue, something to tell her what the hell was going on.

It was in the bedroom, on her pillow that she found the note.

Selene read it once, twice, thrice, until her eyes grew tired and thoughts swarmed in her head. _I thought he loved me_, she wailed in her mind.

She broke down and sobbed herself to sleep that night, hoping that it was all just some hellish nightmare that her damn mind had conjured up, but Selene woke up the next morning to an empty bed, and empty rooms – an empty life.

Selene felt something happen to her, and didn't want to stop it.

She felt her heart freeze and die that morning, and her soul grew cold as her spirit fell. She vowed to never let anyone – Leon especially – back into the depths of her being.


	2. Michael's Maturing

Selene was having a weird week.

There was, of course, her near-death experience to start off the week. This experience had taking away her ability to move, speak, or even live.

Then there was the fact that when she finally _**had**_ been able to start walking, she would get tired all of the sudden and almost collapse.

Then, to top it all off, some anonymous person had been leaving Selene flowers – carnations, her favorite.

_Nobody knows that,_ she fretted, _other than Michael._ And he had sworn that it wasn't him. Which made sense, of course, seeing as how he would just give it to her.

_So many things on my mind_, she thought.

The highlight of her week had been the returning of her ability to speak, and her finally saying 'I love you' to Michael in front of Damien, Marc, and Derek. Other than that, her week was a horrible one.

She leaned back on the couch. She sighed. She had tried to walk around the mansion, then her legs had gave out on one of the staircases, and she had lied there for half an hour until she had enough strength to make it back to her quarters.

"You okay?" Damien asked, walking in through the door left open by Selene.

Selene shook her head. "I took another walk today…"

"_**Another**_ one? How'd you get back by yourself?"

Selene stammered. "I-I just lied there. You know, until I got enough strength back in my legs." She was obviously embarrassed and didn't want to talk about the subject further.

"More flowers arrived today," Damien said, changing the subject.

Selene looked up. "Carnations?"

Damien nodded.

Selene groaned in frustration. "I don't understand this. Other than Michael, no one else knows—" She interrupted herself.

Damien was completely serious now. "What? What is it, Selene?" When Selene didn't answer, he pressed further. "Someone else knows—"

"—that I like carnations." Selene paused. "Leon," she muttered under her breath.

"What was that?"

"The guy who's been sending me flowers anonymously… his name is Leon."

"How do you know this?"

"That's what I wanna know," said Michael from the doorway. Selene and Damien looked up at the same time. "Any reason why this was left open?"

"I found it like that," Damien answered.

Michael gave Selene a puzzled look.

Sheepishly, she said, "I went for another walk today…"

"**Fuck**!" he screamed, startling Selene. "How many times have I told you _**not**_ to go for walks by yourself? Huh?—How many?"

Selene didn't answer. Michael had been like this a lot lately. Michael was always in a bad mood ever since Selene had woken up. He lost his temper extremely quickly. Selene had learned to stay quiet when Michael went off on her, or it wouldn't solve anything.

"And now, now you're not even gonna _**answer**_ me?"

Damien started to say something, but Selene shot him a look.

Michael slammed a table nearby, hard enough to create a crack on it. Damien jumped by his outburst, but Selene didn't.

"Are you done throwing your temper tantrum?" she asked quietly.

Michael sighed and nodded. They had played this scene quite a few times the last couple of days.

The first time had been when Selene had first received a mysterious bouquet of flowers, of her favorite flowers.

The second time had been the first time Selene had taken a walk by herself, and the third time had been an exact repeat of the second episode.

_And this makes four_.

"Who's Leon?" Damien asked softly.

Selene tried not to show her happiness that the subject had been changed, although it was to a subject she wasn't too fond of.

"Leon was a vampire who was, by vampiric standards, only 5 days older than me. By human measurements, he was 5 years older than me. His family was also killed by Lycans… although I'm not too sure of that, anymore." _I'm not too sure of _anything_ anymore_… She paused, remembering that her family had not, in fact, been slaughtered by Lycans, but by her deceiving sire.

She continued, "We got along fine, since we were both changed around the same time. We inevitably became really close friends, and eventually, we became _romantically involved_." She looked over to Michael when she said this, but Michael seemed to maintain an apathetic expression. She saw in his eyes, however, a fire that burned with the blaze of envy… or anger, perhaps? Whatever it was, it was something Selene had never seen before within Michael, and while she was unwilling to admit it at the time, it scared her.

"He was my one true love in those 600 years before I met Michael. But sometime around that American Civil War, he decided he'd stopped caring for me." Bitterly, she said, "After 300 years, he decided he'd stopped." She continued in a less harsh tone, "So he left me a note just saying, '_Some loves are immortal and eternal like the souls that share it, but ours is not_,' and took off to Australia. That was the last I'd heard of him. I didn't really pursue it."

Damien looked at her sympathetically, but Michael remained silent.

"You closed up your heart after that."

Selene nodded. "It was hard enough having to cope with the death of my whole family. But to deal with the fact that the only man I'd ever loved truly, madly, and deeply left me was just too much. It was easier to… to…"

"To shut yourself down," Michael finished. He had visibly calmed down from his temper tantrum earlier.

"Yes, At least, until I found the right person. Which I did." She smiled at Michael. He smiled back.

"I'm glad you did," Michael said at last. He reached out to touch her, but Selene pulled away in a subtle manner.

"I'm gonna go for a short walk," she declared, and walked out of the room, Damien following her.

She led him to the roof.

"What was that about?" he asked.

Selene sighed wearily. "You saw that tantrum he threw?"

"Yeah. It was over something small, too – what was up with him?"

"I don't know," she admitted. "He's been doing it ever since I woke up in the beginning of the week." She lowered her voice, as if someone might hear her. "He's been scaring me, Amie."

"How do you mean?'

"He's been losing his control over his temper lately. I don't know if you could tell, but if you looked at the table he slammed—"

"—it's been hit more than once," he finished. "Yeah, I noticed. But what's causing it?"

"I have a theory," she answered slowly. "But if I'm right, I don't want to be."

"Why, what is it?"

"I think that's he maturing."

There was a pause.

Finally, Damien said, "Wait, like Lycan-maturing?"

Selene nodded, unsure.

"So late? Lycans usually mature within their first two decades, maybe the third."

"Michael's not a Lycan."

"But vampires usually mature in their first few _**months**_**."**

"Michael's not a vampire, either," she pointed out. "He's both. So who's to say he won't mature in his first few _**centuries**_? All the signs point to it."

There was another silence.

'Maturing,' in the immortal sense, meant that an immortal gained more control over its immortal abilities. For some immortals, they went through a period of a loss of control over their tempers and rage. It was more dangerous among Lycans, since they had more raw power, and was also more common among them. The period usually only until they'd claimed their first victim, which had to be an immortal of the opposite race.

For example, if the immortal was a Lycan, the period ended after their first vampiric kill, and vice-versa.

"So would it be a vampire or Lycan?" Damien asked eventually.

"I would _think_ vampire, only because he was a Lycan first."

"Then you're in trouble, aren't ya?"

Selene let this sink in. Until an immortal claimed its first victim, all members of the opposite race were in more danger than its own race. While the immortal's rage was out of control with either race, the chances of the immortal attacking its own race was less than it attacking its opposite.

_And technically, I'm a vampire…_

Derek came up to them on the roof, interrupting any further conversation.

"You have a visitor," he explained. "He says he knows you."

"Tell him it can wait. I'm not in the mood for visitors right now," she replied dismissively.

Derek locked eyes with her. "He's claiming that _**he**_ the one who's been sending you flowers."

Now, Selene was interested. Her eyebrow rose. "Really?"

She raced downstairs to the security booth, which James had had the duty to watch over that night.

James pointed to the screen, "Here he is."

Selene took one look into the screen, and realized immediately that she **had** been right. "It's Leon," she said aloud.

* * *

**A/N:**

**Yes, another new story. Second chapter should be coming soon.**

**Please tell me what you thought about the Prologue and the first chapter -- honesty is wanted!**

**I hope you guys enjoyed the last one I wrote. Hopefully this one lives up to expectations...**

**KATEB819**


	3. I would have said yes

Michael, Derek, Marc, and Damien were now all in the lobby with Selene, waiting for Leon.

Leon strutted his way into the lobby. It was almost daybreak now; the lobby was basically empty, save a few stragglers that decided to stick around to see what was up – _Who _is_ this guy_, they all wondered.

Selene checked him out.

In three-hundred-plus years, he had cut his hair, just like Michael had done in the last two centuries. Leon had taken to wearing black (or dark navy blue) jeans, and a snug gray t-shirt. He had gray/white/black sneakers and was carrying a black denim jacket.

And he looked _sexy_…!

"Leon," she greeted as neutrally as possible.

He walked right up to her and planted a kiss on her lips. Instinctively, she kissed him back, out of habit. The last time he did that, she had kissed him back – she had never _**not**_ kissed him back.

Michael cleared his throat, and Selene immediately pulled away. She looked away, embarrassed.

"How's that for 'hello'?" he remarked. "Get my flowers?"

"Yes," she answered, trying to keep her voice even, "all five bouquets."

Realizing that he wouldn't be able to get the "I missed you" he wanted from her, he sat down. "You look sexier than ever, Selly."

Selene let a smile brighten up her face.

Michael shifted uncomfortably. "I'm Michael," he introduced huffily.

Leon seemed a bit startled – obviously, he had heard of Michael. "Oh, are you? I've heard a lot about you!" He stuck his hand out for Michael to shake and Michael reluctantly shook it.

"How was Australia?" Selene asked.

"Eh, not half as good as Hungary. The people don't taste as good." Everyone gave him a dirty look. "It's a… it's a joke."

"Right," Michael remarked sarcastically.

Selene grabbed Leon by the arm and dragged him off into an isolated room, away from the others. "We don't joke about eating people in my mansion," Selene said. She was smiling.

"God, you look so pretty when you smile. I forgot that."

"Yeah, well, no one told you to leave me," Selene hissed. Her smile had now transformed into a scowl.

He winced. "Still angry about that? I thought you'd get over it by now, Selly." He grinned. "Especially since you're doing a Lycan now. Seriously, I knew you needed me, but to resort to filth like _**that**_?" He wrinkled his nose in disgust.

Selene automatically punched him square in the nose, and when Leon's reflexes caused him to punch her back, she grabbed his wrist and flipped onto the floor, and Leon landed with a _thud_. Leon sprang back up and shoved Selene into the wall _**hard**_, and her face impacted with the side of a painting, causing a thin stream of blood began to trickle down the side of Selene's face.

Everyone came running over. "What happened?" Michael asked.

"Nothing," Selene answered unconvincingly.

Leon let go of Selene. "Damn, you punch harder than you used to, woman," he groaned.

"And I'm a lot less reluctant than I used to be," she retorted.

She turned around and sighed wearily. "Marc or Derek, show him to the room next to mine. Get him settled in."

"Where're you going?" Derek asked as he and Marc began to take Leon off.

"Anywhere but here," she answered vaguely, dabbing at the blood at the side of her face.

She went to the break room and broke out a box of cigarettes. Unlike the cigs of the 21st century, the cigs of the 23rd century were ruby-and-black, instead of the traditional orange-and-white. She lit it up (which could now be done with a flick of a switch on the cigarette itself), and inhaled deeply.

"I didn't know you smoked," Damien said from the doorway.

Selene was exhausted. She hadn't stood that long since the incident, which she tried not to think about too often. _Hard to do that_, she thought bitterly,_ when I can't even stand for over twenty minutes at a time._ "I do now," she commented.

He sat down an gave her an disapproving sigh.

"Nag," she called him.

"Bitch," he responded.

"_40-year-old virgin_ candidate," she taunted.

"Ice Queen."

"Wuss." She blew out a ring from her cig in his face.

"Tease," he said, crossing his arms.

"Who's a tease?" Michael asked, startling the two of them.

"Humans," Selene said, lying.

"Uh huh," he said, not convinced. "I need to talk to Selene alone for a sec," he said to Damien.

Selene went over to the sink and ran some water over a washcloth, dabbing at the blood that had now dried.

"What the hell's going on?" Michael asked.

Selene sighed and dried off the cloth. "With Leon?"

"Yeah."

"Nothing."

"How come I don't believe that?" He paused. "What was with that scene in the lobby?"

"He was insulting you, so I defended you," she stated simply.

That shut Michael up.

Selene lowered her voice, since there were some Stealth Shooters in the break room. "Michael, the night he left me—"

"—she was expecting a note about something else," Leon said from the doorway.

"Derek and Marc were supposed to be—"

"—watching me, I know. But I convinced that I'm not a threat, which I'm not. Unless, of course…" He walked over to her and leaned in close on her. "…you feel otherwise?"

Michael stepped forward and pushed Leon away. "Back off, asshole."

Leon met Michael's eyes. "She ever tell you about what she thought the note from me was gonna be about?"

Michael looked over to Selene, who was staring at a nice spot on the floor.

"She thought," he declared flamboyantly, "that I was gonna propose!"

It got very quiet. No more guns were fired by a Stealth Shooter, no shouting, hitting, or moving. Just the ringing of Leon's voice. "Never did get the question, did you, Selly?" he sneered.

He turned and walked out, saying, "I can find my way back."

Now it was just Selene and Michael, left behind in a thick fog of awkwardness.

"What would you have answered?" he finally asked.

Selene looked away and began to leave. But right before she did, she answered something that she immediately regretted.

"I would have said 'yes.'"

* * *

**A/N:**

**I'm glad that my frist couple of chapters were liked. FYI, this story isn't gonna be too Selene & Michael friendly, not because I don't like them (believe me, I love them as a couple), but because I want to see what it'd be like if their relationship is put through the ringer.**

**Anyway, I hoped you enjoyed this chapter.**

**KATEB819**


	4. A Tumble in the Tunnels

Selene trudged through the forest. She cursed Leon in general, and basically didn't want to go back to Nueve Esperanza. She finally sat down after about ten minutes of walking, sat down on a large, flat rock, afraid to collapse from exhaustion _again_.

"Something bothering you again?" asked a voice.

Selene smiled. _James_.

"Ah, a smile from the unsmiling stone-cold statue."

"What do you want?" she asked good-humoredly.

"A new car, a smoking-hot wife, maybe a couple thousand dollars," he answered, sitting down next to her.

"Don't be such a wise ass," she teased.

He smiled and placed one hand around her shoulders.

"It would seem," he said, squeezing her shoulder, "that every time I've seen you out here, you've been troubled. Should I assume the same for this time?"

Selene hung her head. "Have you heard about Leon?"

"Word travels fast."

Selene groaned in disgust. _Duh._ "And probably even faster now that Erika's staying with us."

"Yeah."

James leaned her head against his shoulder. She frowned. "When he left, I never really dealt with it," she said, meaning Leon. "And now that he's back, I _**really**_ don't want to deal with it."

"That's understandable."

"Is it?"

"Yes." He took her head off his shoulder and faced her. "Selene, your whole family was wiped out in one night. Gone, just like that. Along comes a guy who's gone through the same things you have, and only a day before, too. So you two get down with each other, fall in love, blah, blah, blah."

"No, not 'blah, blah, blah,' at all," she interrupted.

He shushed her. "Then you think, 'Well maybe he'll propose to me,' but he doesn't. He leaves you a brief note saying he's gone to Australia with no explanation following that. Now, since you didn't deal with the death of your family, why would you deal with something stupid like this, right? So you go another 400 years with this tumor, and now it's time to get this tumor taken out." He paused. "Now it's time to deal with Leon, now that you've dealt with the death of your family."

Selene sighed. He made it sound so simple. _And maybe it is_, she thought. Leon's a dick now, anyway. Her head had finally stopped ringing from her initial meeting with Leon in the lobby.

"So," he continued, "I say you go home, talk this out with Leon, and that's that. It's not like you're still hung up on him, right?"

"Right," she answered, but it rang oddly false in her own ears. _Right_, she answered uncertainly within herself.

She began to walk back, but realized after a few steps that she was about to collapse again. James ran to her side while she fell to the ground.

"Shit," they both cursed.

"Just leave me here," she insisted. "I'll be fine."

"Yeah, in how long? Minutes, hours? Nah." He picked her up in his arms, and held her tightly. "Where to, ma'am?"

Selene looked into his eyes. "You-you don't have to."

"I want to. Why would I leave you, my superior, on the side of a road in the middle of a hot day like today?"

He carried her into the lobby, where he placed her into a chair.

Michael came rushing over, as well as Damien, both of whom were still awake.

"What happened?" Michael asked.

"We had a free-for all, and I won," James answered sarcastically.

Michael glared at him.

"Thank you so much, James, really," she answered.

Again, Michael asked, "What happened?"

"I went for a walk," she answered. "And then decided to come back." She left out the part about her not wanting to come back. "I collapsed, and James saved me."

"And he just happened to be there." Damien didn't say it like a statement, but more like an accusation.

James began to say something, but Selene cut him off. "Shut up, Amie." She sat up and stood. "I'm tired, and I'm going to bed."

Derek and Marc ran by her. "Emergency in the city," Derek shouted over his shoulder.

Selene rolled her eyes. "Great," she muttered. "What is it?" she asked Derek.

"Contacts say that a mass of vampires are heading into the sewers."

"Why would they be going there?" James and Damien both asked.

"We don't know, but we **do** know that they were carrying large metal crates."

"Weapons," Michael guessed, like everyone else had.

"Of course," Marc answered.

"I'm going," Selene said.

Damien, Michael, James, Derek, and Marc rang in with "Me, too".

"No," Selene ordered. "Derek, Damien, and James, stay here."

The three protested, but Selene remained firm. "We need someone to run the place in my absence, and we need to make sure our two lovely guests" – Erika/Daisy and Leon – "remain as happy as they can and _**stay put**_."

The three reluctantly agreed to stay, and within ten minutes, Selene, Michael, and Marc were out of Nueve Esperanza and on their way to Budapest.

Selene drove her car, Michael was in the passenger's seat, and Marc was in the back.

When they were well into the city, Marc suddenly said, "This is it, this is the train station that leads to the sewers."

"Are you sure?" Selene asked. "I don't remember it being here before."

"Me neither," Michael agreed.

"No, it's definitely here." Marc seemed sure, so the three exited the car.

"Watch the exit outside, and our backs," Selene ordered Marc.

Michael and Selene entered the subway station together. In 200 years, the stations had remained basically the same. Now they were more black and sleek, and were made mainly of marble.

Marc had told them to follow the tracks straight ahead when they entered, so that's what they did. They looked to make sure that no one was watching, not that anyone was.

"You would have said 'yes'?" Michael asked suddenly, as they were following the tracks.

"What?" Selene was confused.

"If he had proposed to you that night, is that what you would have said?"

"Michael, now is not the time for this shit."

He didn't let up. "He calls you 'Selly,' like a nickname. What a fucking creative—"

"Shh." Selene turned around. "I thought I heard someth—"

Suddenly, Selene was thrown into a wall by a large Lycan.

Pieces of the wall fell on top of her, and Selene passed out for a second. She had forgotten that she was still too weak to be walking, let alone sparring with 7 to 8 ft Lycans.

"Selene!" Michael began to transform, and grabbed the Lycan by the throat. He was well aware, even in his Hybrid form, that there had been Lycans that had either remained neutral or joined the Death Dealers' side. _Let me guess which side they're on_, he mused.

The Lycan broke free and knocked Michael aside. Selene, in the meantime, had woken up and slowly gotten up. Michael fell on top of Selene, knocking her down again.

Another Lycan appeared.

Selene ducked one of its swings, which smacked the other Lycan, who had been standing too close. Michael took the opportunity to punch the hitting Lycan's ribcage, and sent it flying into the wall. Selene grabbed the other Lycan's arm and pushed it into the opposite wall, and kneed it hard in its groin area. The Lycan snarled and snapped at her with its teeth.

Selene let go, back up, and pulled out her gun. She fired off the first half of the clip at its skull, and it dropped to the floor, dead.

Michael, behind her, had pulled the Lycan opponent's head off, making a grotesque and loud cracking sound that echoed through the tunnel.

Selene turned in time to see Michael's adversary fall to the ground, the loser.

Selene expected Michael to change back into his human form, as he usually did, but all Michael did was lick his lips and grin at Selene.

Suddenly, words flashed through her mind:

'_Maturing,' in the immortal sense, meant that an immortal gained more control over its immortal abilities. For some immortals, they went through a period of a loss of control over their tempers and rage. It was more dangerous among Lycans, since they had more raw power, and was also more common among them. The period usually only until they'd claimed their first victim, which had to be an immortal of the opposite race._

_For example, if the immortal was a Lycan, the period ended after their first vampiric kill, and vice-versa…_

And an overwhelming wave of terror flowed through Selene's veins as she realized what that meant for her.

It would mean that she had to fight Michael.

* * *

**plays dramatic music**

**Sorry, but the chapter's been ready for a few days -- I just haven't had time to put it up.**

**The next one should be up very soon.**

**KATEB819**


	5. A Handy Replacement

Michael took one swing at Selene, and knocked her high into the air, and she landed a decent distance from where she had been hit. She didn't know what to do; in spite of their rough patch lately, she didn't want to hurt him.

Michael was there in an instant, picking her up off the ground and hurtling her into the wall. She tried to get up, to at least defend herself, but Michael was there again, kicking her at the side with no end in sight.

But then there was a light at the end of the tunnel – literally.

A subway came roaring down the tunnel, and Michael had to back away to the other side of the tracks to avoid being killed by it. Selene took the opportunity to pick herself up, and she began to run away, and inhaled some vapor from the blood inhaler that gave her strength.

In the meantime, the subway had left the tunnels, and Michael had caught up to Selene. He grabbed her by the shoulders and pushed her to the ground, knocking the wind out of her. He leapt on top of her, and snarled as he went for her neck, as if to bite her.

"Michael, it's me!" she shouted, and Michael stopped his attack. He pulled back, puzzled. "It's Selene!"

Michael however, shook off his moment of weakness and tried to bite Selene again. Selene let out a grunt and kicked Michael in the stomach, sending Michael flying through the air. _There's no way out of this_, she feared.

Michael had ripped some wooden frame nearby, so that now he held a sharp-pointed stake in his hand.

_Oh __**damn**_, she cursed in her mind.

"Michael, just—"

It was too late. Michael aimed and fired his weapon, right into Selene's lower torso. Selene let out a shriek of pain, and found herself being punched mercilessly by Michael's fists.

She finally slipped in unconsciousness, dead to the world, and to the fact that she may not wake up ever again.

* * *

Damien sighed outside in his car. Derek, James, and him had all agreed that they did not think that they should have been left behind. So they left James at Nueve Esperanza to keep an eye on things, and he and Derek drove out, following the road to the train station. But they'd found the strangest thing once they got there: Selene's car was no where in sight.

"Maybe they took someone else's car," Derek figured.

"No, it was definitely Selene's car," Damien said firmly. Damien pulled out his cell phone. Derek listened to Damien's side of the conversation. "Yo, James. Hey, yeah we got here, but Selene's car isn't… no, it was her car, for sure… Yeah, I know, weird. Listen, can you check to see where her car is? …The GPS system, nimrod. Yeah, use the… yeah. Alright, call back." Damien hung up. "Idiot."

"He's gonna check for us?"

"Yep." James called back two minutes later, saying that they were at a different train station.

"But that makes no sense," Derek remarked on their drive to the other station. "The other one has no entrances to the Death Dealer's territory. It's in neutral."

"I know," Damien agreed. "There is nothing there."

They drove into the train station, just in time to see a frantic Marc pull out of a parking spot with Selene's car.

"What the—"

Damien shook his head, not wanting to waste time, and ran into the station. _Something's wrong_, he fretted. He dashed into the track area, not caring if anyone saw him. If Selene was in danger and something happened to her that he could've prevented…

Derek was right behind him, when they stumbled across a Michael-in-Hybrid-form punching a concrete wall.

"Is that Michael?" Derek asked.

"Where's Selene, then?" Suddenly he spotted her; she was lying on the ground, her lower torso impaled by a large wooden stake, like Buffy the Vampire Slayer would have tried to take out a vampire. There were also two Lycan bodies, and Damien couldn't identify them as any of his fellow allies by scent. _Death Dealer scum_, he concluded.

He ran over to Selene, but Michael snarled and jumped at him, claws out.

Derek shot Michael with a tranquilizer gun, and when Michael merely fell but was still attacking in vain, shot him again. This time, Michael passed out.

Damien thanked Derek and rushed over again to check Selene. "Oh my God," he whispered when he saw her. She had a decent amount of bruises and scratches, not to mention the fact that her arm appeared to be broken. From the state of the walls, Damien observed that it must've been from her being tossed into them.

He checked her pulse, which was still strong. She was breathing fine, too. _Probably just too weak to stay conscious_, he guessed.

He picked her up and held her, her legs draped over one leg and her head cradled in the other. Derek picked up Michael and carried him the same way, cautiously. He carried his beautiful burden back to their van, briefed Marc, while Derek strapped them in the back of the van, putting extra restraints on Michael.

On their way back, Derek said, "I wonder what's wrong with Michael. How could he have attacked Selene like that?"

"He's maturing," Damien stated simply.

Derek paused, stopping at a red light. "So late?"

"All the signs point to that."

"I know Lycans are violent when they hit 'puberty,' but I didn't think it could be this bad."

"Apparently, it can," Damien said, looking over to Selene as the light turned green again.

"Don't be so worried about her," Derek said. "We just have to get her away from him while this is happening, then she'll be fine."

"She'll never go for that, you know that."

"Yeah, but I thought it might sound reassuring," Derek responded.

* * *

Selene felt strange, like she was floating and sinking at the same time. All she could see and feel was nothing, but she heard a lot – crying? sobbing? – and it made her want to wake up.

Slowly, her vision and sense of location returned to her, like memories long forgotten. Then, an enormous wave of nausea washed over her, and Selene felt like she might vomit. It quickly went away, but she still felt shitty.

She moaned, and the next thing she knew, someone's hands were in hers. Vaguely, she realized it was Michael's.

"Michael?" Her voice sounded alien to hers, like it hadn't been used in a while.

She realized now that he must have been crying; his cheeks were tear-streaked. "Yeah."

Her head pounded in sync with the thumping of the muscles, too weak to do anything but make her lay in bed.

"What happened?"

"Damien said… he thinks… you had a theory about me maturing?"

_Of course._ She had to be right about the one thing she didn't want to be right about. _Great_, she thought sarcastically. "Yes, but I wasn't sure I was right until today." She remembered the crazed look on his face, the loss of control he exhibited in the tunnel.

"You have to stay away, then," he said. "You're not safe around me."

Selene sat up – or tried to, anyway, since the motion sent her head spinning a million times. "Look," she managed. "I'm not going anywhere. I'm not gonna run away from you just because you're a bit testy."

"A bit?" scoffed Leon. "The guy broke you arm," he stepped into the room, counting on his fingers, "tried to bite you – from what the doctor could tell, and more. 'A bit,' is a lot less than that."

"Why do you have to be suck a dick?" Selene demanded of him. She sat up all the way, this time with no repercussions. "Was it the Australian air? Because you certainly weren't like this when you left."

"On the contrary, my sweet Selly. I was _**exactly**_ like this before. You just didn't seem to realize it." He grabbed her arm – the one that wasn't broken – and slammed her against the wall, before Michael could react. "Maybe love does blind people."

Michael grabbed him and flung him to the ground.

Leon sprang back up, and smiled. He snickered. "Stay out of this, Hybrid."

Michael went to hit him, but Selene stuck her hand out and grabbed the back of his shirt to stop him. "Michael, please." He looked up at Leon, then at Michael. "I need to talk to him," she said, letting go of his shirt, "alone."

Michael opened his mouth to protest, but Selene placed her good arm around him. "Please?"

He reluctantly gave in.

Selene smiled a little, and gave Michael a kiss on the lips. She pulled away after a few seconds, and said to Leon, "Follow me."

He did.

When they got up to the roof, Selene leaned against the railing surrounding the roof's perimeter.

"When you left, I thought I'd die," she said quietly, her back to him. He walked up to her and gently stroked her back.

"I thought I'd stopped loving you. Turns out, I didn't."

She slapped his hand away. "Why didn't you come back, then? You were gone for four-hundred-fucking-years. You didn't think at all in that time, 'Oh, maybe I do love her'?"

Leon looked away ashamed. "I made a mistake, I know. But we had more than you and that Lycan—"

"His name is Michael, and he's a hybrid, not a fucking hybrid."

"Didn't start out that way."

Her gorgeous permanent electric azure eyes glistened in the moonlight. "Michael is twice the man you could ever hope to be, and you're not even half the man _**you**_ could ever hope to be."

Leon looked hurt, but didn't say he was. "Tell me, Selly, did he help you through what will probably be the worst thing that ever happens to you? Has he held you when humans tried to burn down our building with torches? Did you lose your virginity with him?" His voice was soft, especially tender with his last question. Selene looked away, afraid that he eyes would show him what she'd been afraid to see herself – that she'd still had feelings for him.

"Leon," she said, "stop." There were tears in her eyes.

He held her in his arms, squeezing her just right, the way he always had. Michael still hadn't been able to do this, even after two hundred years. He leaned over and nuzzled her neck, ad Selene relaxed, unlike when Michael did it. She always had this fear that he'd change and just bite the whole thing off, which there was a possibility of, now.

She reluctantly pulled away. "You had your chance. Michael has done nothing to deserve this."

He hung his head and sighed. "I know. I'm not here to get you back, not anymore. I can see the way you look at him, it was the way you used to look at me. It's such a warm, loving look. I can tell you two are like, soul mates. I don't want to get in the way of that." He walked up to her, and held her again, perfectly. "But I'm here for you. Know that."

"Thanks," Selene said graciously, and leaned her head on his shoulder.

James suddenly burst through the door to the roof and saw Selene. She let go of Leon, and asked him "What's up?"

"We have good news," he said, choosing to ignore what he had just seen. "We can reattach a hand for you. Well, not _**we**_, we; Dr. Lockwood can."

Selene smiled. "I guess I'll have to get it done, won't I?"

Selene bowed to Leon, and said, "Thanks for the talk."

Leon waved it away nonchalantly. "It was the least I could do, Selly."

Selene started downstairs, with James following her. "Dr. Lockwood suggests we start the procedure immediately, so that the hand we're about to reattach doesn't have as high a chance of infecting you. Right now, it's sterile, and Dr. Lockwood wants to keep it that way."

Selene nodded. "Tell Adam I'm coming. I just want to tell Michael." A chill ran down her spine at the thought of facing Michael. Every time she closed her eyes, she had a strange feeling, like Michael would just attack her when she least expected it. _Which is stupid._

James nodded.

Selene walked to her quarters, and hesitated before turning the doorknob. _What if Michael attacks me again?_ She pushed away the fear and opened it, to find an empty room. Well, not _**empty**_, empty… Erika was in there. Selene had encouraged everyone to stop addressing her as Daisy, since that would imply that they respected their prisoner's wishes… which they didn't.

"Erika," Selene acknowledged disdainfully. "Where's Michael?"

Ever since she had been brought back to Nueve Esperanza, Erika had been either stuck in a chair, bed, or locked in a small room. When she wasn't, and was roaming freely, she was under constant surveillance. According to reports, the Death Dealers were not having a good time without a leader to follow. _Thank God_, she thought, happy that the war may not necessarily be over, but her side was winning substantially.

It was Selene and Michael's turn to baby-sit her

"Out for a walk, and he said he wasn't gonna be back until he-doesn't-know-when."

Selene hung her head in disappointment. _I really don't wanna put this off…_

James came up behind her. "Where's Mike?"

"Out for a walk," she repeated. "I don't think I can do this alone."

"You're not – you've got me, Damien, Derek, Marc…" Selene didn't seem convinced. "And Leon, I guess," he added.

"I'm doing it," she said, easily persuaded.

* * *

**A/N:**

**I'm sorry if this story is a bit confusing. I'll clear it up (hopefully) in one of the following chpaters. I'd been meaning to, anyway.**

**As for Michael killing Leon, I already have an ending planned (and I hope it all goes according to plan), so you'll all have to wait to see about that.**


	6. In the Unconscious Mind of Selene

Selene lied down on the hard, firm operating table. She was nervous, she had to admit, but she was fine. They couldn't locate Marc (had he gone out for a walk?), but Damien, Derek, James, and Leon were all there. Leon was holding Selene's hand.

"You're gonna be fine," he told her reassuringly. "If you die, mark my words, Michael will kill me and then I'll kill you," he joked.

He gave her a hug and let her go.

Damien, Derek, and James all muttered their good wishes and goodbyes.

It all went by so quickly that, before she knew it, she was under and all there was were her thoughts and an endless abyss of blackness.

Time passed by quicker for Selene than it did for everyone else. Minutes for her were hours. The operation itself was 5 hours, but for Selene, it seemed like only 5 minutes.

_This is so strange. It's like I'm here, but I'm not. All there is are my thoughts and Nothing. If I stopped thinking, stopped wondering, would I cease to exist? Is it that all there are in one's mind, the presence of thoughts and Nothing?_

_But this is so dull, wondering about something I'll never have the answers to…_

_I wonder where Michael is. Am I afraid of him? Yes… I am. Why am I? He's not dangerous, and this should be over soon enough, right?_

…_Right…? Right…_

_Now, here's a funny thought. How did those Lycans attack us in the tunnels? Marc was watching our backs… and there's no way that they could've known which route we were taking unless… unless…_

Suddenly, Selene felt herself waking up.

…_unless there's a traitor…_


	7. A Couple of Kisses & a Couple of Fights

Selene woke up, overjoyed to find Michael once again at her side.

"Michael!" He leaned over and kissed her, and Selene was able to suppress a flinch that seemed to come instinctively.

He pulled away, and said, "Oh, God, Selene, I'm so sorry. By the time I got back, it was already halfway through your surgery."

Selene patted his shoulder, and was pleasantly shocked to find that she could _**feel**_ him with her new hand. "It's fine," she said, and meant it.

He smiled. "Damien said that you were nervous."

"Yeah, I was," she admitted.

Michael sat there, wondering what to ask next. "How did this work? The surgery, I mean."

Adam walked in.

"Ah, just in time, Adam. Michael was just wondering about the technical side of this surgery."

Adam smiled and sat down. He took off his glasses and rested them on a table. Selene always thought he looked like a nerdier Wentworth Miller, with more hair, of course.

"Well, it's actually quite simple. We took Selene's blood cell – one from her hand that she donated – and cloned it. When it was done growing, I was afraid that it would start to die or decompose, since it wasn't attached to any living tissue. But I ran tests after your surgery on your whole body, and everything's healthy." Adam smiled. "Just be sure to drink plenty of blood – _**vampiric blood**_."

Michael frowned. "Why vampire blood specifically?"

Adam's brow wrinkled. "You do realize that Selene's still technically a vampire, right? Her blood hasn't been tainted by the Lycan strain. She does have Corvinus blood in her, but she's still just vampire, just as much as I am."

"Oh," Michael replied. He had to say that he was shocked when he found out that Adam had been turned into a vampire.

After he had called the cops on him, Adam's life returned to normal – for a couple of days, at least. Then Erika had come along, spotting him walking one night, liked him as eye candy, and bit him, wanting to lick his lollipop for an eternity. But she was so pushy that it scared Adam into running away (after all, who wouldn't? Kraven basically did the same thing.), right to into the welcoming arms of the Stealth Shooters. It was Michael and Selene's final decision to make him the official, go-to medic of their team. Adam's been content with doing what he'd set out to do for all of his immortal life since.

Leon walked in. He strolled over to Selene. "And how's our **handy** Selly doing?"

Selene rolled her eyes at the horrible pun. "Tell me why you didn't go into comedy again?"

He playfully squeezed her hand, and she squeezed back. He looked up at Michael. "Hey, Mike. Can I talk to you outside?"

Michael reluctantly agreed, planting a long kiss on Selene's lips. When the two of them walked out, Adam had an amused look on his face.

"What are you smiling at?" Selene asked the 200-year-old vampire.

"Those two are having quite the pissing contest."

"They both know who I'm in love with," Selene said, although it rang with uncertainty.

Adam nodded, unconvinced. "Do _**you**_ know?"

"Yes: Michael," Selene said. _Except for the fact that I flinch every time he comes near me…_

Outside, Michael and Leon weren't having a very pleasant conversation.

"Look," Michael began, his voice sharp and edgy. "Selene is _**mine**_. And just because we may be going through a rough patch doesn't mean anything."

"No, _**you**_ look," Leon fired back, although his voice was much more calm than Michael's. "I'm not here to take her away from you. I missed my chance, and I can tell by the way she looks at you that there's no chance in hell or heaven that she's coming back to me. I don't think I'd want her anyway, coz she's always gonna be in love with you."

Michael couldn't say anything back.

Leon stepped forward, more relaxed. "Look, you're a nice guy. I get that. Every person here on your team, vampire or Lycan, has respect for you that I don't think even Viktor could've ever matched. You're supposed to be even-tempered, open, and a cool guy. Damien says that you're fine with the way he jokingly flirts with Selene. Why can't you be the same way with me? I'm just doing the same thing."

Adam walked out of the room, and down the hall.

Michael answered, "I guess it's because you and her have such a history. I mean, you were there when her family died. You were there when they found the Americas, for the love of God. You even… she lost her virginity to you. So, I mean, you can see why I'm threatened, right?"

Leon nodded. "I do. But it's all in the past now."

Michael visibly relaxed.

Leon relaxed even more, now. "I mean, so what's a couple of kisses mean?"

And then Michael exploded. It was like his blood was boiling and he had such a weight built up in him, like his soul needed to escape in a burst of energy that he just needed to scream – or roar. He lost all control, even though he tried to maintain it.

"You did _what_?"

Leon backed up, taking three huge steps. "Uh… nothing?" _Yeah, right_.

Michael grabbed Leon by the collar and flung him into the wall. "You fucking kissed her?" He punched Leon smack in the nose. "Huh? You kissed her? Did ya?"

Michael began taking swings at him, whether they were wild or right on target.

Selene came running out, and immediately regretted it. "Michael! Stop!"

Michael dropped Leon to the ground, and Leon was now bleeding in several areas on his face.

"You slut," he growled, now transforming and facing Selene.

Selene was panicking now, something she never did. "Michael, it wasn't anything, please."

He slammed her into the wall. He roared at her, and Selene knew it was too late. There was no reasoning with him; she'd just have to find a way to fight him and knock him unconscious.

Michael picked her up off the floor, and Selene punched him in the face. She wasn't sure how long she could last these days – hopefully long enough to get him to stop attacking her. She tripped him, then ran for the medical room she had just come out of.

Michael seemed to know what she was trying to do and slammed her through another wall, into another empty medical room.

She blocked a few more of his attacks, two to the chest and one for the head. She dodged a tackle from him, and when he dove at her again, she grabbed him by the throat, like she had the night they'd first met.

This time, however, Michael brought his arm up and slashed her across her face with his nails. Selene dropped him, but Michael brought both his hands up, and shoved her through a bed, snapping it in half.

Selene could feel herself tiring out, but refused to let herself conk out. She grabbed one half of the bed and slammed it on Michael's head. He hissed at her in fury, and grabbed her by the arm, flinging her into the ceiling with all his might. Selene heard ringing in her ears as gravity plunged her in the floor.

Michael picked her up again by the back of her shirt, and through her through the whole that he had created in the wall, and she wound up in her original medical room.

Selene spotted the tranquilizers, which were kept there if a Lycan was raging uncontrollably from pain, and she shot the gun (which was always loaded) at Michael – three times.

He finally collapsed, slowly regressing back to his human form.

* * *

**A/N:**

**Hey, people. I hope enjoyed this chapter and that any criticisms you may have you can put up in a review. As always, thanks for any reviews or comments you submit. They help me a lot...**

**KATEB819**

Leon had run off to get some help during this whole ordeal, but Selene wished that he was there with her, just to hold her.


	8. Leon Gives Selene a Speech

Damien was watching some chick-flick movie, but his thoughts were somewhere else. Specifically, Selene.

He couldn't help but worry about her – after all, her and Leon were the only two vampires in the whole Coven to ever make contact with Michael on a day-to-day basis. But he also admired her, sticking with Michael even though there was a good chance she'd be his next meal.

_I want a girl like that_, he thought.

Suddenly, Leon came bursting into the room. Unlike the suave, handsome look he'd had just before, Leno was now bleeding and bruised from what looked like a fistfight that he'd lost.

"Michael—Michael… Michael…" he stammered.

"Oh, you dumb shit-head. Don't tell me you went and picked a fight with Michael." _Although, the way the air's been so tense lately, it was just a matter of time…_ He'd thought that once Selene had said, 'I love you,' to Michael, things would be fine. Apparently, the case was not so.

"No," he gasped. "Michael's… fighting with Selene."

He didn't need to say another word. Damien sprinted out of the break room, with Leon close behind.

The hallways and room passed by in a blur. Before he knew it, he was _**there**_, even though he didn't know where 'there' was. _Medical room,_ he guessed by the tools and apparatus in the room.

Selene was sitting on the floor, not moving.

"Selene," Damien said, kneeling next to her. Selene looked up, but she looked immensely shocked.

"Selene, thank God," he said, stroking her hair. "Are you okay?"

She looked paler than usual. "Uh… yeah."

Adam came running into the room. He looked annoyed that his best medical rooms were turned into a war zone. But all this paled in comparison to the fact that his superiors were either knocked unconscious or bleeding and bruised.

"Don't tell me Michael went into another rage," he said, and bent down to check Selene's cuts. "Want me to get them stitched up?"

Selene pulled away. "No. I-I'm fine, really. I just need some… some air." Selene got up, and she stalked out of the room. Leon and Damien followed her out, leaving a very nervous Adam to clean up the mess and find a place to put Michael. _I'm a vampire, too,_ he recalled uneasily.

* * *

Selene was on the roof, smoking again. Damien and Leon walked up quietly. Selene did her best to ignore the both of them, but as usual, Damien didn't make this easy.

"Kate Beckinsale used to smoke," Damien observed as Selene puffed away.

She scoffed. "What's your point?"

"You're more like her than you think."

Selene coughed. "How so?"

Damien smiled, happy to be making some kind of progress with Selene. _At least she's not being an bitch or ignoring me…_ "Well, she was dating some director, Len Wiseman, who directed some crappy movie as his first-ever film… _**Underwear**_, or something like that… and she stuck with him through it. All these guys are wondering what a hot babe like her saw in a geek like him, but through it all she stuck with him. She didn't have to, but she married him and everything."

Selene rolled her eyes.

"So it's like you and Mike. You don't have to stick with him, but you have."

Ignoring his point completely, Selene asked, "Wasn't Kate Beckinsale _**in**_that crappy movie? She can't really put down her own movie, can she?"

Damien shrugged. "Oh, yeah… But still, you get my point."

Selene put out her cigarette. "Couldn't you compare me like, Hillary Clinton or something? Same decade."

Damien smirked. "Hillary wasn't British; that was the swing vote. Otherwise, I woulda went with her as my speech."

Selene chuckled, and made Damien smile.

"Thanks, I guess, Amie. Thanks a lot."

Damien nodded. "That's what I'm here for." He playfully punched Leon. "See you two around."

He exited through the door.

Selene was still smiling.

"I remember when you used to do that when you thought about me," Leon commented.

Selene turned around. "Maybe I still do," she said quietly.

Leon sighed. "How come I get the feeling that Michael's phase isn't the only thing that's bothering you?"

Selene turned around. She shrugged. "I used to know so clearly what I wanted. Michael. That was it. And now…"

"…you're not so sure?"

Selene looked down. "It's just this whole thing with him makes me wonder if it's worth it. And if I really cared about him, should I even be questioning whether or not it's worth it?"

Leon grabbed Selene by the shoulders, shaking her. "Look at me. In the eyes." She did. "Selene, you said 'I love you' to him. You've never ever said that to any other man before. Knowing you, you wouldn't have said it if you didn't mean it."

Selene looked away, but Leon pulled her chin up and made her look him in the eyes. He looked deep into her orbed abysses, a thick swirling pool of white and cobalt blue. He never could tell what was going on behind those beautiful eyes.

"What Damien was trying to say was that if you really, seriously thought that it wasn't worth it, you would've ditched him and ran the moment you found out he was maturing. I know I'm staying away from him. I also know Adam probably won't be coming near Mike anytime soon. You're probably gonna be the only vamp in this whole place that'd go within a mile of him willingly." He let her go, satisfied that he was getting through to her. "I know that he probably hates the both of us right now. I know you might even hate me for complicating things. But I don't like being the cheat-ee, so to speak; I think it's morally wrong, although I understand the temptation to do it. So even if you _**do**_ have thoughts to be with me and not Michael, I won't hear of it. Mike's a decent guy, and I wouldn't do something like that to him. You wouldn't either."

Selene smiled and hugged him. Then she pulled away. "Okay, honestly? When we kiss, I feel nothing. But… you comfort me when I need it. Michael can't do that, not with this subject."

Leon smiled. "Have you ever tried going to him for comfort? If I had to guess, he might need some comforting, too." He sighed. "Just explain to him that our kisses meant nothing. They did, right?"

Selene nodded.

"Okay. Explain that you just come to me for comfort, advice, venting, but nothing else. Mike's a cool guy, I can tell he is. I'm sure he'll understand."

Selene nodded.

"But before you go, let's go and get your cuts and stuff cleaned up. You're actually turning me off, for once."

Selene playfully smacked him.

"I love it when you play rough," he said taunting her with a rude gesture, and Selene went to smack him again.

* * *

**A/N:**

**Thanks for reading... Comments, anything, are welcomed**

**KATEB819**


	9. A Traitor in their Midst

After being cleaned up, Selene walked toward where Adam had told her he had placed Michael in a bed.

"He won't be vicious when he wakes up," she had tried to explain to him.

He had sighed. "Maybe not, but I'm not taking any chances. I'm sorry, but his doctor is gonna have to be the best _**Lycan**_ doctor we have on staff, not me."

While Selene was disappointed to see that Adam was surrendering so easily, she could sympathize with him. After all, had she herself not doubted her dedication and loyalty to Michael several times?

She sat there, watching him rest. _I guess those tranqs really did work on him…_

Finally, the next night, Michael woke up. He was a bit groggy, but he was coherent.

At first, he seemed a bit confused as to where he was and how he got there. This confusion quickly dissipated.

"Selene? How did I…" when he realized, a look of overwhelming guilt washed over his features. "Oh shit. Oh, God no… did I… Oh, Selene, I'm so sorry…"

She smiled at him and lovingly placed one hand on his cheek. "Shh, it's okay," she cooed.

Michael sat up. He touched one of the scars he had left on her face. "I can't believe I…"

Selene shook her head. "It's okay. Really."

He looked around the room. "No one else is here."

"They're all busy. It's not that they don't want to see you, it's just that they've all got something to do."

"Why don't you 'have something to do', then?" he asked bitterly.

Selene looked hurt, biting her lip so that her fangs showed. Her vampiric eyes shimmered in the light, moist and sad. "You should rest," she said quietly, rising to leave.

He grabbed her arm firmly. "No, I didn't mean to… Please, stay?"

Selene sat back down, a bit hesitant but not wanting to provoke another attack from Michael.

Suddenly, her cell rang. It was Leon. "One moment," she said to Michael to excuse herself. She stood in a corner.

"Yes?"

"How's it going?" Leon asked.

"Not exactly as I had hoped."

"Nothing ever goes the way we hope, Selly. Just try your best to talk to him."

"I was, until you called."

"Whatever." He sighed. "I just wanted to check up on you. I worry about you, you know."

"Yeah. Look, I'm gonna go now. Bye."

The call ended.

"Who was that?" Michael asked, now sitting at the edge of his bed.

"Leon," Selene said, and Michael's head shot up.

"Who?"

"Leon," she repeated, although she knew he'd heard her just fine. "Vampire, about 6'2, 180 pounds?"

"Right, him," he said, his voice icy.

She sighed. _Here we go…_ "Michael."

"I don't wanna hear about it. Why don't we just do a 'Don't ask, don't tell' thing?"

Selene shook her head, frowning. "There's nothing _**to**_ tell."

"What?"

"Okay, I did kiss him—" Michael scowled and closed his eyes "—but it didn't mean anything. It was… a habit, but nothing more."

Michael didn't say anything.

"But I do have to confess something. While I didn't feel anything _**in**_ that kiss, I do find a certain kind of comfort in him. Something that I can't get from you." Michael frowned. "I just find it easier to come to him for comfort about your 'maturing,' but I realize now – he helped me realize – that I never gave you a chance to do that. And I should have. So for that, I apologize."

Michael stopped frowning.

Selene knelt on the ground, looking up at him. Her eyes shone like a couple of moons in the dark night sky. They held some kind of light, the pure and forever-burning light of love. "I love you Michael. And I won't lose you, not to something stupid and temporary like this. You'll always be the man that saved my life when you didn't even know my name, and you'll always be the man that saved my soul when you didn't even know where it was."

Michael looked down at her, no longer frowning or smiling or containing any type of negative energy in his body. "I love you so much, Selene. Thanks for not leaving me," he said lamely.

Selene smiled, not caring how Hallmark-like her last statement had sounded. She rose and kissed him. He kissed back, and for one moment, they were suspended in a warm, time-stopping kiss that filled the both of them with love and happiness.

They both pulled away at the same time, making the whole event seem like something out of a crappy story. Only it wasn't.

Unfortunetely, the whole scene was spoiled by the arrival of Derek in Selene's door.

He seemed embarrassed that he had killed the moment, but he was too flustered to leave.

"I have some really, really bad news."

Selene looked up at him, a bit annoyed that he was standing there. "What is it?"

"Do you want the bad news, the worse news, or the worst news?"

"In the order you just said them in."

"Uh, okay. The bad news is that Daisy's escaped the mansion."

"So wait, that's the _**best**_ news?"

"Yes. The worse news is that Marc's missing. We have no idea where he is."

"What the fuck is the worst news, then?"

"Well, it would appear that while we've been dealing with these things, a whole group of Stealth Shooters were killed, right where you guys were the other night."

Michael shook his head. "That's impossible. That tunnel's been empty. We've never had reports of activity down there since—"

There and then, Selene remembered her thoughts of when she had been unconscious. _A traitor_. "Shit," she cursed, interrupting Michael's sentence.

"What?" Derek asked.

"There's a traitor," she said, finally voicing her thoughts.

"Who?" Derek asked. "And how do you know this?"

Selene sighed. "I'm not sure," she admitted. "But it makes sense. Ever since Erika was captured, we've had more busts on our missions than before. It's like the Death Dealers have _**known**_ where we were gonna go."

"So you think… that they have an inside man, a secret informant."

Selene nodded. "We can rule out quite a few people. There are only a few people who have information about the locations, and a few who are in charge of knowing the missions ahead of time."

"Derek, you, me, Damien, and Marc all know the missions' locations ahead of time. And James and Adam are the only ones who have info on the locations before everyone else does," Michael said.

"It's not the three of us," Derek said.

"Which leaves Damien, Marc, James, and Adam." Selene sighed. _This isn't gonna be easy…_

"It can't be Adam, He's never left the medical wing, and we log his calls to monitor the shipment of medical supplies," Michael said.

The three quieted down, trying to puzzle it all out.

"I think it's Marc," Selene said suddenly.

"What?" Michael and Derek said simultaneously.

"I trust Amie and James," she explained. "And think about it. The last two times my team was attacked, he was supposed to be watching our backs outside. The time before last, he declared us dead. The last time, Michael wound up attacking me. And the Lycans came—"  
"—from all directions. Behind us, in front of us… I remember," Michael finished. "I-I agree. If those are our options, then I agree."

"It would also account for where Marc and Erika are."

"How would it account for Erika?"

"Marc was watching Erika tonight… supposed to be, anyway."

"Hasn't he done it before?"

"No, this is the first time. He requested it, too."

"If he and Erika are working together, no good can come from it."

Derek's cell rang. Once again, Michael and Selene listened to his side of the conversation.

"Hello, James. Is he now? Where is he?... Break room, okay." He hung up. "Marc's back, the little asshole. He's in the break room."

Derek drew his gun and began to charge out of the room. Selene grabbed him and held him at bay. "Not yet," Selene said. "I want to see if we can play his own game and beat him at it."

"You want to see what his excuses are."

"If he came back, there was a reason. I want to see what it is."

"It could be to kill you," Derek pointed out. "We could be walking right into a trap."

"If he wanted to kill me, he could've camped out outside my window and taken a shot at me. It's gotta be something else."

"Okay, maybe he's not planning on killing you; maybe he's planning something else. We can't go in there without a plan."

"I'm going alone," Selene said.

Michael stepped in. "Like hell you are. You're definitely—"

"—going in there by myself. If we all go in there, he's gonna suspect something. I want to see how far he'll take this charade. I want to see what he's planning, releasing Erika."

Michael started to protest, but Derek interrupted him. "I concur with Selene." Michael began to interrupt, but Derek cut him off. "You two hired me to be the tiebreaker. Here I am, breaking the tie. Don't argue just because it's not in your favor."

Michael shut up.

Selene smiled at Derek. "Give me and Michael a moment alone, please?"

Derek nodded. "Sure." He stepped out.

"Michael, why are you protesting?"

He sighed. "I don't want you to be in danger, especially since everything's so unpredictable right now."

"Michael, what's the worse he can do? We have security cameras in the break room, and I doubt he'll be able to drag my unconscious body out of Nueve Esperanza without bumping into _**somebody**_."

He was silent for a moment, unable to retaliate with a comeback. "I know. But you can't blame me for worrying."

Selene kissed him on the forehead. "Honestly, I find it cute. But you know you can't stop me."

"Yeah, I've figured out that once you make your mind up about something, there's no changing it."

"Good."

She kissed him again, this time on the lips. She began to walk out of the medical room, but stopped before continuing her exit. "I love you," she said.

"I love you, too."

Selene sighed, hoping that her encounter with Marc would go as well as she wanted it to.

* * *

**A/N:**

**Thank you so much for reading this far. I sincerely hoped you enjoyed it. Any comments are useful!**

**I want to take a moment and thank underworldfan2000, unitfive, london vixen, vampire-luvr, and choksantos for submitting their helpful comments. Thanks a lot, guys!!**

**KATEB819**


	10. Three Traitors

Leon came charging up behind Selene. "Yo, Selly."

Selene turned around.

"How'd the talk go?"

"It went fine."

He smiled. "That's great!"

"Yeah, a great load off my chest. Unfortunetely…" She drifted off, unsure of whether or not to tell him about the Marc-crisis.

"'Unfortunetely', what?" His eyes looked into hers, trying to share her fear, and take some away from her as to make her feel better. But she couldn't tell him, not yet. Besides, she had to stop relying on him 24/7, right?

"Nothing," she lied. "I mean, unfortunately, it took so long to get it off my chest."

"Oh, right," he said, not believing a word. "Where are you going?"

"To see Marc in the break room," she said. _At least _that_ wasn't a lie_…

He nodded. "Well, try not to have too much fun without me. Have you seen James?"

"Yeah, he's doing security tonight. He's in the booth."

"Ah, thanks." He walked off in the direction, opposite to the one she had been heading in.

She walked on to the break room. She took a deep, calming breath. Why was she so nervous? It's not like he could _**do**_ anything to her… right?

Marc looked up at her when she entered. Damien was in there, too.

"Amie," Selene addressed, "go see Derek. Tell him I sent you." She wanted to do this alone.

Confused but obliging, Damien left, leaving Selene and Marc alone.

"And to what do I owe this honor?" Marc asked, amused. His human eyes glistened under the radiant lights of the break room. His face, which usually was filled with a mysterious darkness was now much more devious. Selene could already sense something was up.

"Where were you?" she asked, skipping straight to the point.

"Out," he answered vaguely.

"Be more specific."

"Why?" He smirked, adding to the negative atmosphere in the room.

"I'm your superior; you don't need a reason," she said coldly. "Where were you?"

"What does it matter to you?" he asked, trying to side-step the question.

_Fuck this_, Selene thought. _I'm not playing any damn games with this rodent._ "Were you with Erika, huh? Scheming to kill some more Stealth Shooters now that you had had a chance to free her?"

Marc smiled now, a cock over-confident grin. "So, you finally figured it all out. Took you long enough. I thought you'd have figured it out ages ago, but you didn't. Honestly, and this is the leader of the Stealth Shooters," he mocked.

Her blood seethed in fury. "How _**dare**_** you**? We trusted you, and you betrayed us to the Death Dealers. How many of your friends, your fellow Lycans have died because of your inability to stay loyal?"

"I could say the same for you. Did you not betray your own sire, your friends for 600 years, all for some potentially-doomed relationship with someone of the opposite race? Do not be such a hypocrite."

"A hypocrite? I'm not a hypocrite, unless the reason you have chosen to betray us was in the name of love—" She cut herself off as she realized she had hit the nail on the head. "Erika. You fell in love with Erika."

"I think you'll remember that I joined the Stealth Shooters quite a while after they had been formed. You never once doubted my loyalties?"

She shook her head. "No. I _**trusted you**_. That was a mistake. I know that, now." She paused, trying to calm herself. "It doesn't matter now. I hope you enjoyed freeing Erika, because now you're in deep shit. We have security cameras that have taped this whole thing—"

"Do we, now?" he interrupted, smiling.

Selene stopped in confusion. "Yes, James is—"

"You think I'm alone in betraying you? Once I failed killing you the time before last, I recruited James to get close to you."

Selene wouldn't back down. "So what? Leon went to visit James. So even if he is playing around with the cameras, Leon will stop him."

"Will he?" Marc was on the verge of maniacally cackling. "You never even considered that he was a traitor, did you?"

Selene was shocked, speechless.

"No, you let your feelings get in the way. Oh, Selene. You used to be such a strong warrior, never letting emotions get in the way of your job. And now? Now you're fucking everything up. You've gone soft."

Selene was pissed off, now! She grabbed him and threw him upwards, through the ceiling (which was also the floor of his own room), and he came flying back down. He tripped her, got up and picked her up, slamming her into the wall. He turned around, still holding onto her, and flung her on the table, breaking it.

Selene felt Corvinus's blood flow through her veins, and she knocked him through the wall, into the empty dojo. _Where are Stealth Shooters when I need them_? she wondered as she blocked a few of Marc's hits.

She kicked him, sending him flying into the gun rack. He picked one up – loaded, to Selene's dismay – and flipped off the safety. He aimed and took a shot. She was too fast and dodged several of his shots. Finally, she was standing right in front of him, and he took the gun and smacked her across the face with it, sending her to the floor.

He plucked her off the ground, and punched her straight into the wall. Selene landed with a thud. She got back up, and she ran over to him, tackling him to the floor. He rolled off the floor, and sprang right back up. She punched him a couple of times, making blood flow from several places, and then she kicked him through the door to her office.

She went in for the finishing move, to permanently put him out of business, but two things – or people, specifically – stopped her.

Leon and James came up behind her, grabbing her arms. She tried to fight back, but the mixture of fatigue from the fight and the might of the two immortals was overwhelming. She tried to free her self, but all her efforts were in vain; she simply didn't have the energy.

Marc got himself off the ground, and grabbed Selene by the hair. She gasped in pain, and he forced her to look at him in the eyes.

"You're a naughty little bitch," he spat.

"Good. We have something in common, then," she replied, and Marc viciously backhanded her, hard enough to make her black out for a moment.

"Get her out of here," he ordered Leon and James. "Get her to the Death Dealers' fortress. I'll handle getting her out unseen. That is all." Marc began to walk away.

Selene tried again to free herself, but once again she couldn't.

"Fucker!" she screamed in anger.

Marc pivoted and returned. He punched her in the gut, making her crumple to the floor in pain. "Gag her," he ordered James, and he did so. He reached into his pocket, and pulled out a syringe. He injected her with the liquid, and she felt herself fall into unconsciousness.

Like with the two men that she had trusted but had betrayed her, she tried to fight it, but with no success.

* * *

**A/N:**

**I'm so sorry it took so long to get this one up. Technical difficulties can be such a hinder. [rolls eyes**

**Anyway, I hope all of you enjoyed this chapter. Thoughts?**

**KATEB819**


	11. Planning a Rescue

"What are you doing here?" Michael demanded. _As if I want two traitors here!_

Leon stepped forward. "Cut the crap, Michael. The longer you spend fighting me, the longer Selene gets tortured."

Michael was taken aback. "What'd you say?"

It was James's turn to speak, now. "You heard him. As we speak, Erika's lack of hospitality is taking its toll on Selene. Erika got the most brutal, violent, unfeeling interrogator on her side to torture Selene."

"Why should we believe you?" Derek asked coldly. "You two brought her there."

"Yeah," Damien said, adding, "what have you done to gain our trust? For all we know, you could be lying just to get us all killed, ambush us!"

Michael put up his hand to stop the other two from going further. Curious, he asked, "What _**are**_ yow two doing here? How'd you get in without being stopped?"

"Well, no one's in the security booth," Leon said.

Derek barked over the futuristic walkie-talkie, "Get some men in the security booth this instant!"

"And we're here to help you rescue Selene," James said.

Damien scoffed. "'Help'? You put her in that situation!"

"We had to," Leon insisted. "It was the only way we could figure out to find out where their new fortress is."

"And where is it?" asked Michael.

"Underground, where you guys were attacked the other night," answered James.

Damien smirked at Derek. Ignoring this, Derek asked, "And they're holding Selene down there now?"

They both nodded solemnly. "We have to hurry, before they do something to her that can't just be healed." James voice cracked in the middle of the sentence.

The whole room got quiet. The possibility that Selene was in pain, suffering reached everyone.

"What do you suggest?" Damien asked eventually.

James and Leon shared a look. "We had an idea," James began.

"But we're not sure it'll work," finished Leon.

"Right now, it's all we've got. We have to choice but trust you and your plan," Michael said, and Derek and Damien agreed.

"Our plan," said Leon, "was to pretend that we've captured you guys and infiltrate the fortress that way."

"Actually, we were just planning on using Michael, since any more would add suspicion. Then, afterward a team could come in. But our first priorities, I think you'll agree, are to get Selene out and make sure she's okay."

Michael, satisfied with this plan, asked, "Do you know if the Death Dealers are planning something big as a come-back?"

Leon and James got really quiet, now. An awkward moment seeped into the room and engulfed the men.

"What is it?" Derek asked.

Leon gulped, and looked down. "Uhm, they created this liquid that they can inject into any immortal," he began nervously.

"What does it do?" Michael asked impatiently.

James bit his lip, the looked down, too. "It forces them to go into a rage," he answered quietly.

"They plan to use it against you, Mike," Leon added. "Against Selene."

Damien snorted. "The whole fucking place is full of vampires. How can they be sure that Mike will go after Selene?"

James shifted his weight uncomfortably. "Mike is gonna go after the vampire with the richest blood. That's Selene."

Everyone turned to look at Michael. Michael had paled during this conversation, now looking as if he were about to faint.

"The-there's an easy way around this," Damien said. "Just don't come to rescue Selene."

"Then who'll rescue Selene? They won't let anyone else near her. They would have security that they could at least control Michael and the situation itself. They don't have that security with anyone else, so they won't be near enough to rescue Selene." Leon shook his head. "_**Our**_ whole plan revolves around Michael being able to be in the fortress before any team is. Unless, of course, you guys have another plan?" He sounded hopeful, but when no one volunteered, he seemed defeated.

"This is the only plan we've got," Michael said, "and we're gonna stick with it. Selene needs us. All of us." He looked around at the most important men in the Stealth Shooter community. "Do Leon, James, and I all have your support in this, Derek and Damien?"

Damien answered first, certain and confidant. "I support this plan."

Derek answered next, calm and cool. "Me too."

Leon smiled. "Great. The only thing we need to do now is create a second team that Derek will need to watch over the mansion in our absence."

"And, of course, organize a way to get the Death Dealer's new weapon away from Michael at all times," Damien said.

Michael smiled. _We work really well together_, he thought. _I never realized how much effort it took to keep us all working together in peace_. Selene always did that. _And she made it seem so effortless_. Michael corrected his thinking – _And she _makes_ it seem so effortless. She's not dead, yet_!

It was then that he almost collapsed, sitting down on a couch behind him. He cried, letting out all the pent-up emotion he had kept within him. How could he let Selene almost slip through his fingers? The very real reality that Selene could be dead soon touched him, and he cried. The other men automatically knew why Michael was falling apart and did their best to show him they were there for him, but the truth as that Michael felt just as alone as Selene was feeling in that moment.

* * *

**A/N:**

**I'm trying to get used to a new computer, so sorry for the delay. I would've gotten this one up sooner...**

**The next chapter should be up soon. crosses fingers **

**Thank you so much for reading!! Please leave a comment on anything you would want to comment on and bring to my attention, if you think there is anything.**

KATEB819


	12. The Rescue Goes Wrong

It was a strange feeling to be in the position Selene was in. Minutes seemed to be hours; hours seemed to be days. In truth, Selene was held captive for a total of 10 hours by the time she was rescued by Michael. What held her rescuer up was none other than her capturer. After divvying up the teams and relaying their missions several times to ensure a smooth time, Leon and James finally 'kidnapped' Michael and brought him underground to the Death Dealer's fortress.

Michael had, by then, composed himself and was determined to liberate Selene from the pain she was in.

They brought Michael straight to Marc, by accident. Marc had been passing by the entrance when they had entered. _Bad timing, bad sign_, Michael worried.

"What the _**fuck**_ is he doing here?" Marc demanded.

Leon looked at Marc sheepishly, faking innocence. James copied him. "Who, _**him**_?" Leon asked, indicating Michael.

Marc nodded, ready to blow up at any second. "Yes, _**him**_," he spat.

"W-we just thought that we'd save you guys the trouble of kidnapping him and we did it for you," James explained.

"Uh huh," Marc said. "Whatever. Bring him to Erika, see what she wants to do with him."

Leon had gagged Michael before they walked in and James had tied him up to create the appearance that they did kidnap him. They dragged Michael to Erika's office, next door to where Selene was being held.

Erika's head shot up when she saw Michael. "What the _**fuck**_? Did Marc order you to—"

"—No, no he didn't. We did it on our own to save you guys the trouble."

Erika looked pleased. "Wow. Thanks – even my own guys aren't as thoughtful."

Marc walked in, unsure of what mood Erika would be in.

"I have to say, Marc, that your guys are very proactive. Nice surprise." She batted her eyes at him.

He blushed. She ran into his arms and they shared a long, wet kiss. Michael suppressed a gag. "I'll be patrolling, babe," he said, and left the room. Erika sighed contentedly at his exit. Leon and James rolled their eyes. Unlike the traditional Death Dealers' leader's room, hers was decorated with pictures of hunky men and pink and black paint.

She snapped at Leon and James, "Put Michael on that couch."

Suddenly, a scream – Selene's – sounded from the next room. It was a pained cry, and while Erika ignored it, it made Leon and James jump and break into a sweat. Were they going to be too late?

They exchanged a nervous look. "Milady, why don't we take him to Selene? That way, we could begin our plan?" Leon tried not to gulp. Their whole plan relied on Michael being able to rescue Selene, and get her out of there if she was too weak to fight. That way, the team waiting outside could storm the fortress without worry about catching their leaders in their line of fire.

Erika seemed pensive for a moment. "Fine," she said. She seemed to want the room to just herself, anyway.

Almost sighing with relief, Leon and James brought Michael to the next room, the room where the scream had come from.

It took all their self control to keep from screaming when they saw Selene's state.

Selene was chained to the wall by the wrists, ankles, and abdomen.

Her face was covered with blood and bruises, her arms drooped with strange metallic shards protruding from them. Her legs had cuts and slashes, her body appearing to be cruelly and mercilessly whipped for hours, which she was. There were spots on her body that had marks that looked like she had been branded, like a cow, and her hair was wet, like she had been held under water.

Needless to say, the sight was not pretty.

The interrogator looked up at their entrance. "Another toy for me to play with?" he asked eagerly.

"No," Leon snapped. Realizing he didn't want to arise suspicions, he made his tone more gentle. "Daisy wants us to leave Mike here so they can start whatever it is they have planned, Greg." The soulless vampire nodded.

"I'll leave, then, so you guys can set up." Greg began packing up his box of torture utensils.

Selene, in the meantime, had just hung limp, silent from her bonds.

Greg pointed at Selene. "Quite the stubborn one," he commented. "I've beaten, stabbed, slashed, burnt, whipped, cut, held her under water, and stuck crap in her body and still her spirit remains intact." He scoffed. "What a fucking waste that her alliance is not with us."

James pretended to feel the same way. "Yeah, it's a real bummer."

Greg walked over to Selene. "Stubborn one, aren't you?" he asked her. Her eyes snapped open and she glared at him, breathing heavily. He smirked. She struggled pitifully to break out of her chains, and in return Greg gave her a powerful blow, enough to force a gasp from Selene's lips. She didn't move after that blow, hanging her head. "Real stubborn."

Trying to get Greg out of the room, he said to him, "Let's leave Mike here and we can start setting up."

Greg nodded hesitantly. "See you two outside." He walked over and gagged Selene, then left the room.

Following this, Leon and James let out a long sigh of relief. They quickly loosened but not completely removed Michael's bondages, then left him there. "Get Selene out of here through that door over there. If you can't find your way out right away, just make sure you aren't seen. We'll stall in the meantime." Michael nodded to what Leon said.

"We'll send the signal to Damien's team," James added before they both left.

That just left Michael alone to finish his part.

He ran over to Selene after releasing himself from the ropes that were tied around him. "Jesus Christ," he muttered. He easily broke the chains that held her to the wall.

He gently carried her and placed her on the ground. He looked over all of her wounds, surprised that she wasn't howling in pain.

"Michael…" she murmured weakly.

"Shh, I'm here now," Michael whispered, kissing her forehead. "It's okay."

"Leon and James…?"

"They're not really on the other side," he explained briefly. "Marc is, though."

"Oh." Michael suddenly realized she was wheezing and breathing heavily, more so than before.

"We gotta get you outta here," he said, picking her up in his arms. For all he knew, she was knocking very hard on Deaths door, and he had no intention of letting It answer it.

"I've had worse," she insisted. "You don't have to carry me."

He smiled at her typical bravado. "Can't you just _**act**_ like a damsel in distress for once? Can't you just do it for my pride?"

She laughed quietly. "I'll try."

They shared a look, then Michael kissed Selene and even though she was in pain and was tired, she kissed back with even more passion than he kissed her.

"I knew you'd come," she said to him when they finished.

"Well, it's good _**one**_ of us knew that," he remarked.

Without any more talk, he carried her through the door Leon had pointed at.

Michael immediately regretted it when he saw marc and Erika – Daisy – in the next room.

Marc was grinning from ear to ear. "Hello, Michael."

"Where are your two buddies?" Erika asked. "Getting reinforcements?"

_Shit_, Michael cursed. He didn't say a word.

He placed Selene down. She stood by herself, although she looked as if she might faint at any moment. He readied himself for a fight.

But all that ended when Erika hurled some kind of dart at Michael's chest. He pulled it out. A pang shot through him, and he felt himself changing, losing control of himself and his actions. _Oh no,_ he wailed in his hybrid mind as some other Michael took over. _The liquid!_ The liquid he had been warned about was now coursing through his veins, taking the driver's seat with a full tank of gas.

Michael tried to resist it, fight it, but all hope was gone.

Selene realized it, too, but could do nothing as Erika and Marc made their escape through another door and left her to hold her own against Michael.

Weak, tired, drained, and vulnerable, Selene cursed her bad luck as Michael surged forward to deliver a devastating blow to Selene's chest.

She didn't want to fight Michael, but she knew that she had to if she wanted both of them to survive the night.

* * *

**A/N:**

** plays dramatic music **

**I have to reveal that the next chapter might be a bit devastating to some readers, so prepare yourself when you read the next chapter...**

**Then there should be maybe one more chapter (short one), followed by an epilogue.**

**There should be one more story following this one. After that, I don't know what I'll do.**

**Thanks for reading. PLease leave a comment on what you think!**

**KATEB819**


	13. Selene's Savior

Selene flipped back up. Michael came at her fast, blood-thirsty and merciless. He swung at her low, but Selene leapt backwards, flipping out of his reach. He grabbed her by the arm and smacked her into the wall, causing blood to flow freely down her face, which was already bloodied and bruised by the events of the last several hours.

She elbowed him in the face, and he let go. She used her vampire "superpowers" to run up the wall, hanging on the ceiling, her heart pounding as she dropped behind Michael and delivered a blow to his face. He took the hit, then pushed her through the wall into the hallway. He sprang on top of her, digging his claws into her side. Selene screamed out in pain, but a backhand by Michael silenced her.

She kicked him off, and she knew that she couldn't go all out on him. Instead, she threw him into a wall, and took his moment of disorientation to try and run back into the room she had been held in, hoping to find a tranquilizer or some antidote to get Michael out of his raging state.

Breathing heavily, heart thudding against her chest, Selene heard gunfire in the distance. She also the familiar noise of the Fate Plate. _The Stealth Shooters are here_? Figuring that they were supposed to be there as a diversion for her escape, she ran faster, only to be tripped by Michael and flung through a glass window.

Selene rolled stealthily, and got back on her two feet. He flew through the window after her.

There was a crazed, hungry look in his eyes. His urge to kill as stronger than any she had ever seen before, even on other Lycans she had seen maturing. Unwilling to be unnerved by this Michael-in-disguise in front of her, Selene attempted to take a swing at Michael. Michael, instead of taking the hit, grabbed Selene's arm and twisted it behind her back, so far until there was a loud _crack_

He had broken her arm. Selene cried out from the pain that was now shooting through her, and Michael let go, only to shove her to the ground and kick her while she was down into the wall.

Gasping from exhaustion and pain, Selene staggered to her feet.

Michael ran faster than immortal speed, and kneed her in the gut. He plucked her off of the ground when she fell and hurled her upward into the ceiling. Impacting with a grunt, gravity seized Selene and she plummeted back onto the floor.

Selene got back on her feet once more, refusing to give up. If she gave up now, Michael might kill her, and she wouldn't let that happen.

He came at her again, this time with his hands locked and coming down with full force. Selene dodged the attack, and took the opportunity to make a blow at his side with her good arm, sending him flying through the air.

He snarled and hissed at her, and when she delivered a kick to his face, he rebounded and roared with all his might. He surged forward, punching her mercilessly into what might have been defeat if the circumstances had been different and she wasn't dealing with the loss of her life and the one of the man she loved.

Selene shoved him off her, sending him soaring though the air he landed with a sickening thud, but Selene ignored the bile that rose in her throat and moved in to try and knock him unconscious.

The liquid, however, made Michael more ferocious than normal maturity rage did, and Michael growled and took swings at Selene. She blocked all of them, and proceeded to strike him with the back of her hand, causing a deep growl to come from Michael's throat.

Michael then took another blow from Selene, but ducked the next. Anger flowing through his soul, he knocked her to the floor. Selene was tiring out, almost crying I desperation. She wasn't even sure she could get back up. Unfortunately, Michael didn't give her a chance to find out.

He dug his sharp nails deep into her back. Ignoring her painful shrieks, he withdrew them, then repeated what he had just done in different spots.

The mixture of what she had endured from Greg and what Michael was doing to her now overwhelmed her and Selene yelled her pain until it seemed to be personified.

Still uncaring about the pain he was inflicting, he did it again.

Drained of all her energy and determination to save Michael from himself, Selene collapsed in a large puddle of her own blood. She would live, no doubt, but her energy at that moment was depleted and would not return fully for some time.

Michael was about to move in for the finishing move, when a voice rang out, startling Michael.

"Stop it!" It was Leon, alone. "Dammit, Mike, leave her alone!"

Taken aback, Michael backed off, appearing to realize just what he was about to do.

Leon ran over to check on Selene, who was conscious, but barely.

"Leon…?" Her voice was weak, and her face contorted in pain as she titled her head to look at him.

"Shh," he whispered soothingly. "You're gonna be fine, Selly."

Leon looked over to Michael, who seemed to be trying to fight whatever it was that was controlling his actions.

But he lost.

Michael's head snapped up at him, and Leon gulped. Snarling, Michael dove at Leon, but Leon side-stepped and Michael instead landed atop of Selene. With Selene having no energy to fight Michael, Leon yanked Michael off of Selene.

Then there was a moment that Leon and Selene shared, a clear moment that seemed to last hours, but ended too soon.

Selene realized what Leon was about to do, and could not stop it. "No," she mouthed, begging Leo not to go through with what he was about to do.

But they both knew that it was in vain, because Leon had already made up his mind. "It's the only way, Selly," he whispered, holding her as Michael picked himself up. "You know I'd do it for you a million times."

Ignoring her sobbing, pleading him not to do it, Leon placed her gently on the ground.

Selene struggled just to stay awake, with the blood loss and fatigue. And she could do nothing as Leon did what he resolved to do.

Crying, Selene watched as Michael lunged forward at Leon. Leon did not fight, did not struggle as Michael tore out Leon's throat. For Selene, it happened in slow motion, and every second that passed by was an hour for her.

Wailing in grief, Selene barely registered that somebody was holding her in his arms. Damien.

"Oh, my God," he breathed, holding onto her tightly. "Oh, Selene…"

Selene continued her useless cries for Leon, feeling herself die inside, turning to ashes with Leon's last breath.

It seemed like hours passed by.

Michael turned back into his human form, and when he realized what he had done, there was nothing in the world that he could have done to console Selene.

It seemed like the whole night went by just like that – with her in Damien's arms, holding her and rocking her; Michael looking like he had just killed the woman he loved.

Perhaps he had.

* * *

**A/N:**

**Okay, so that's the before-the-last chapter. The next one's really short... and then an epilogue will follow.**

**So sorry to any and all Leon fans, but I had to do it so I can set the mood for my next story...**

**Anyway, comments and feedback are welcome. The next chapter should also be up, as well as the Epilogue...**


	14. The Ice Queen Returns

_Selene leaned against her balcony's railing, feeling the cool night breeze rush past her face. Taking a deep breath and letting it flow into the bottom of her lungs, Selene smiled when a familiar presence came up behind her._

Leon

"_Hey, Selly," he greeted her warmly. She threw her arms around him and gave him a hug. He returned it, embracing her just as tightly.  
"Leon," she said, taking a step back to feel the moment._

_He smiled. __"You look as if you're staring at a ghost," he commented. When Selene gave him a blank look, he said, "Ah, that's right. You are. In fact, you've been staring at me every time you've slept for the last week."_

"_Can you blame me?" She sighed. "You're dead, Leon. That's not something that I can just forget about and move on."_

_He stroked her hair, touching her in the way he always did __– the right way, the way no one else ever could._

_She leaned her head on his shoulder, and he held her. "We can't do this forever, Selly," he said quietly. She didn't say anything._

_He let go of her._

_He looked deep into her eyes. "You've gotta wake up eventually."_

* * *

Jerking awake, Selene banged her head on her desk lamp. Rubbing her head where she'd hit it, she glanced around, immensely disappointed that her dream was just that: a dream. In fact, that dream had been following her around ever since Leon had a died, exactly a week ago.

Her eyes puffy from tears that seemed to never stop when she was aloe, Selene slowly realized that she was in her office in the dojo. _What was I doing_? she pondered.

_Inventory_, her mind answered. _The never-ending adventure of inventory_.

It wasn't her turn tonight, but Selene had insisted for the last seven nights that she do it. She needed to do it, or else she'd have free time on her hands. And that wasn't good.

_James, that's it._ It would've been James's night to do inventory tonight. But that wasn't any good. James had died that night too, seven nights ago. According to Damien's report, some Lycan had come up from behind and ripped James's whole head off.

And so here Selene was, with a new shipment of guns and ammo that needed to be logged in, and three major losses on her team. _Marc, James, and Leon_.

Tears threatened to come. But they didn't. Because Selene was sick of crying, sick of locking herself in the bathroom so that Michael wouldn't see the tears come.

And while she logged in how many Uzis had arrived, Selene promised herself that from now on, she would lock herself mentally, not physically in a tiny room and would never come out.

_Never again_. Never again would she open her heart and make herself vulnerable. Never again would she show her emotions. Never again would another tear come down her face, not if she could hold it back. And she could.

That night, Selene froze herself in her self-built prison within her mind, throwing away the keys. The tears disappeared, the possibilities of a smile vanished, and all that remained was the shell of Selene.


	15. Epilogue

"_Michael, you're unique. There's never been a hybrid before. However ambivalent you may feel about it, the truth is your power could be limitless. But you depend on blood. You need to feed – without it, you'll be growing weaker by the second."_

_The refrigerator was door closed by Selene._

"_Use the time for that."_

_She tossed a packet of blood at him, and he seemed to be in disbelief that she expected him to drink the damn thing. Little did he know that in 200 years, he'd be drinking blood without a second thought, just like a human ate food._

_He seemed unsure what to do next… tear it open like an animal, or drink it nice and sophisticated?_

"_And what if I don't?" He seemed to gulp, staring straight into her eyes. "What if I _**can't**_?"_

_Explaining the only way she knew how at that time – bluntly – Selene gave him the answer that he wasn't looking for. "Normal food would be lethal. If you don't anticipate your cravings, you will attack humans."_

_To Michael, Selene kept on going to her next statement without breaking stride. But in Selene's head, it went back in time. Had it only been a century ago, in the fall of 1902 when she had broken the cardinal rule of not feeding on humans?_

"_Believe me," she continued, "you don't want that on your conscience."_

Even over 200 years after this event, Selene could still remember the guilt she'd felt in that moment. In two centuries, she still had not shared the fact that she had once bitten a human being.

Or what had happened to the human afterward.

* * *

**A/N:**

**And this is where the story ends.**

**Well, it's been quite a ride. Thanks, guys, for making it a smooth one. Thank you espcially to unitfive, london vixen, vampire-luvr, underworldfan2000, and choksantos for your kind reviews! (By the way, unitfive, congrats on meeting Kate. Hope you have fun!!)**

**Let me know what you guys think. Anything is helpful, even the hate reviews! lol**

**KATEB819**


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